


Growing Pains

by inkyemaline



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Angst, Bad Decisions, Childhood Friends, Childhood Memories, Domestic Fluff, Fluff and Humor, M/M, Mild Language, Mild Sexual Content, Non-Graphic Violence, Teenagers, Unresolved Romantic Tension
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-27
Updated: 2018-11-05
Packaged: 2019-07-18 07:36:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16113824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inkyemaline/pseuds/inkyemaline
Summary: A series of one-shots detailing misadventures from Lea and Isa’s childhood.





	1. Rocket

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts.

Lea came up with the idea for the rocket. Isa was quick to interject.

“You expect us to build it from scratch?”

“So, you’re not _completely_ against the idea?”

Isa crossed his arms, a stance that he commonly took whenever speaking to his _reckless, overzealous,_ and _irresponsible_ best friend since birth. Lea met his gaze with a shit-eating grin and raised eyebrows that practically screamed _you know you want to try._

“You didn’t let me finish,” Isa deadpanned. “You expect us to build it from scratch and possibly risk our lives just for the chance to see something explode midair?”

“Well, yeah,” Lea shrugged as though this were the most obvious statement in the world. His grin widened when he noticed Isa’s eye twitch. The urge to roll them was overwhelming, but he knew Lea would take offense to such a blatant display of indifference.

Isa opted for the logical route, instead. “There are fireworks for that.”

The grin fell, just slightly. With that, Lea opted for the begging route. “Isa, please.”

“No.”

“You’re my best friend in the entire world.”

“I’m your only friend in the entire world.”

“Which is why it would be so _special_ for us to do this _together_!”

Isa stared directly into the puppy-dog eyes inches from his face, glanced down at the hands clasping his, then back up to the puppy-dog eyes. Was Lea _actually_ making his lip quiver? Oh, fine.

“Alright, but I’m not hosing you down if your clothes catch on fire again.” Did he mention they had tried this before? Yeah, they had tried this before. That was a fun holiday.

Lea raised his hands in triumphant fists, crowing in victory. Isa rubbed his temples, following his friend as they made their way to the redhead's garage. Would he ever learn to say no to Lea’s antics?


	2. Sleepover

Lea and Isa went through a rebellious phase in their early teens. In all actuality, Lea went through the phase – Isa just played along, because _someone_ had to ensure that Lea’s semi-nihilistic moods failed to progress to illegal activities.

Well, aside from arson, but so far that had been contained inside a private garage. Isa counted that as a small miracle.

Like most teenagers intent on rejecting societal norms, Lea decided to skip out on whatever dance their school hosted that year in favor of guzzling energy drinks and raging at video games for a consecutive twelve hours. Secretly, Isa was grateful for the invitation to join him; social events had never been his forte, and while he found the taste of Red Bull revolting, it definitely trumped witnessing his classmates grind on one another or stumble around from drinking too much spiked punch. He relied on Lea to voice that sentiment, however, choosing to remain indifferent while secretly agreeing with his friend’s complaints.

Eight hours into their violent fanfare of shooting games and action RPGs, along with two four-packs of Red Bull later, Lea crashed. Isa, sitting cross-legged on the floor and focused intently on the television screen, did not notice immediately. Lea had passed him the controller twenty minutes ago, convinced that the other boy would never beat a mod that spawned dozens of tank-like monsters simultaneously. Isa was loathe admitting it, but the massive hordes of creatures towards the end of the level were getting the best of him.

 A loud snore broke his concentration, and he glanced over to find Lea passed out in a beanbag chair. Isa snorted softly, choosing to ignore the screams that indicated monsters ripping his character apart on-screen in favor of studying Lea instead. The redhead was partially curled into a ball, mouth hanging wide open and hair sticking out in all directions (more so than normal, anyways).

“You never shut your mouth, even when sleeping,” Isa muttered, but fondness took the edge off any bitterness in his tone. This was not the first night to end like this, and it would not be the last so long as Lea ignored his limits when it came to energy drinks.

Isa stood slowly on stiff legs, wincing at the pain from hours of poor posture. He grabbed the blanket off Lea’s bed and carelessly draped it over the other boy, stifling another snort whenever Lea twitched slightly in his sleep.

“Knock it off,” he muttered groggily, barely comprehensible, but curled up tighter beneath the blanket and immediately fell back asleep.

Isa chose to ignore the gripe and shut off Lea’s gaming console instead. A few moments of contemplation confirmed where he would be sleeping that night: although Lea’s bed called to him with the comfort only a mattress could provide, the redhead now possessed the only blanket in the room. Isa sighed in resignation, before lying down beside Lea and detaching part of the blanket from his grasp. The beanbag made for an excellent pillow, if there was no other upside to this, and Lea was practically a heater against his side.

Of course, Isa could have slept beneath the bed sheets, but who knew what Lea got up to in his free time?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was referencing Left for Dead in the latter half of the story. The tanks are absolutely BRUTAL, and I don't know anyone who could take on hordes of them at once.
> 
> Have a prompt or scenario you'd like to see? Leave a comment!


	3. Crush

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And now, the moment you've all been waiting for: a chapter from Lea's perspective. 
> 
> Semi-blatantly crushing on Isa included.

Lea cannot recall when he began developing feeling for Isa. He only remembers the first time those feelings revealed themselves, fully formed and coursing through him like adrenaline. Isa had walked out of his house to meet Lea one afternoon, smiling softly in greeting, and Lea’s heart had begun pounding for reasons unbeknownst to him. They followed the same routine as always, stopping by Scrooge’s for ice cream and debating whether or not sneaking into Ansem’s lab unseen was a feasible task. Usually, Lea’s mind was racing with theories on what was inside, but that day, Isa consumed his thoughts.

Something must have been different- maybe even wrong- with Isa, for Lea to experience these symptoms. He pestered Isa more than usual on their walk through the streets of Radiant Garden that day, desperate to discover whether Isa had gotten a new haircut or was secretly angry with him. Eventually, Isa snapped at him for being so unrelentingly nosy, and then Lea was _convinced_ Isa had been mad at him.

The thought embedded a painful knot in Lea’s stomach, and he quickly apologized. This earned him an inquisitive glance from Isa; apologizing would have normally struck at the redhead’s pride, but Lea could only bring himself to care that Isa was no longer snappy with him.

Why did he care? Isa was _always_ snappy.

He pondered these feelings for weeks, unable to escape the odd warmth enveloping him while in Isa’s presence. His palms were mildly sweaty the first time he invited Isa over to play video games since _that_ day, and Lea spent the next several hours sneaking glances at Isa to see if he noticed as they passed the controller back and forth.

“Afraid I’ll beat you?” Isa quipped, smirking over at Lea after catching the looks for _at least_ the eighth time. Lea could only offer a half-hearted laugh in response. His heart raced for the remainder of the night.

Upon lying in bed that night, Lea concluded the worst-case scenario: he was crushing on his best friend. Isa would never let him hear the end of it, if he found out, and he might not want to speak to Lea anymore. This had to stop, immediately.

Alas, Lea wasn’t able to scheme the proper way to quickly alleviate a crush, because the next day, his mother happened.

Due to his absence the previous year, Lea’s mom forced him out of the house to attend the school prom; naturally, Isa tagged along. Probably because Lea and Isa’s moms contacted one another, and _of course,_ they both agreed, it would be a healthy experience for both boys. Lea spent the next several days apologizing for his mother’s intervention, guilt nagging at him relentlessly. The first time, Isa simply stared at him and stated, “Wouldn’t you have dragged me along, anyway?”  This did nothing to calm the anxiety consuming the redhead, so Isa switched between ignoring him and quirking his eyebrows in a way that read: _Seriously?_

The night of the dance arrived too soon for Lea. He hated dressing up, for starters, even though it gave him the excuse to spike his hair up more than usual. He had never minded mingling with his classmates, being the more social one between him and Isa, but the only person that he wanted to speak to that night _was_ Isa. His hands were clammier than usual, even compared to the past few weeks, and when Isa stepped out of his parents’ car to meet him at the front of the school, any semblance of his usually boisterous greetings stuck in his throat. He opted for an awkward wave, instead.

Were those _butterflies_ in his stomach, or was he just nauseous?

“I think I’m going to be sick,” he muttered once Isa approached, determined to keep his eyes towards the floor rather than staring at Isa in a freaking _suit._ The black definitely suited him; it mirrored the serious side of his personality while also drawing Lea’s eyes to his friend’s slender form. Even his hair seemed softer than usual, illuminated in the security lights of the school’s courtyard. Since when did he find Isa _attractive_?

“Hmm?” Isa stopped mid-stride, and Lea clamped his mouth shut.

_Oh, great, now I’m lying to him. He’ll see through that instantly, and then he’s bound to know…_

Unexpectedly, Isa laid the back of his hand across Lea’s forehead. Not even with the slightest bit of _snap out of it_ aggression that he might expect, just…gently resting there. In that moment, Lea forgot how to breathe. The students milling around them on their way towards the school’s gymnasium simply ceased to exist in his mind, which had pretty much short-circuited from Isa’s touch. He had it bad. Oh, _God,_ he had it _bad_.

“You don’t feel like you have a temperature,” Isa stated, pressing his hand to different points on Lea’s forehead. “Then again, you’ve always been such a hothead; maybe you’re finally going to spontaneously combust.”

_Buddy, you have no idea._

That earned him a snort from Lea. “Yeah, yeah, thanks a lot, Mom,” he joked, brushing Isa’s hand to the side. His fingers tingled from the brief contact. The joke had loosened the tightness in his chest, though, reassuring him that Isa must not be angry with him after all. Even better, if he still had yet to notice the recent quirks in Lea’s behavior, perhaps it wasn’t such a big deal. Lea could hide this and keep their friendship normal for as long as he needed to. That was all the reassurance he needed, for now.

A quick glance behind them confirmed that Isa’s parents had left. “What do you say we get out of here?” the redhead suggested.

Isa’s lips quirked up at the suggestion, and Lea pretended his heart wasn’t trying to leave his chest at the sight.

“For once, I support your delinquency,” Isa replied, already walking away from the school. Lea grinned and wasted no time in following him.

Maybe he could accept having a crush on his best friend. In a completely platonic way, of course.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters in one week? And this one actually contains romantic content? Maybe I enjoy writing AkuSai a bit more than I thought. The next chapter will feature Lea and Isa after being caught in Ansem's laboratory. So, we're gonna get ANGST up in here.
> 
> Thanks for the kudos so far!


	4. Guilt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating increases for this one. Nothing graphic, but vague mentions of violence and torture.

Lea could only blame himself, really.

Sneaking into Ansem’s laboratory the first time had been a prank born from mere curiosity. The second time, the _final_ time, was a mission born from pure spite. Isa, although not pleased with the results of their first attempt, was not spiteful. Lea, on the other hand, with his boyish pride, could not shake off the humiliation from being snagged by the back of his shirt and thrown out the front door. Literally.

Before this occurrence, both boys amused themselves with theories on the contents of the laboratory. The more farfetched ideas, such as the random disappearances throughout Radiant Garden connecting to one of Ansem’s darker experiments, belonged to the redhead. The bluenette preferred a more rational line of thinking, but had long since given up on explaining to Lea that people were likely not allowed inside due to the delicacy of the equipment, not criminal behavior.

Unfortunately, Lea’s theory now contained evidence- or least, what _he_ considered evidence. Despite his and Isa’s trespassing, the use of force seemed unnecessary against two teenage boys; thus, the desire to return strengthened with the possibility of sinister secrets. Even Isa could not deny his curiosity, but convinced Lea to rethink their former strategy in return for agreeing to try again. Rather than waltzing through a door on the main level of the castle this time, as though hiding in plain sight _ever_ worked, the two of them returned through a door purposely blended into a back, exterior wall.

Isa had been the one to discover the hidden entrance, after noting that Ansem’s apprentices could often be seen strolling through a gated area to the side of the castle rather than using the front entrance. Further investigation- or trespassing if one wished to be technical about it- led to the hidden door with a keypad lock. Fortunately, a gaunt, older man by the name of Even muttered loudly to himself as he typed in the code. This all took a couple of weeks of intense stalking to piece together, and the day before carrying out their plan, Isa told Lea he owed him for the tedious reconnaissance.

Thinking back on it now, Lea would have paid Isa the remaining years of his life for the chance to escape their current situation. The problem was that neither boy was sure how much time they had left, or whether any amount of time would really be enough.

Security cameras had glimpsed the two stepping out of a stairway corridor, blinking rapidly to adjust to the blinding lights of the underground laboratory. The two burly apprentices from before wasted no time in seizing them, but instead of kicking them out like last time, dragged them across the lab floor into a hallway lined with dozens of rooms. No, _cells._ Each door was marked with an ominous X and locked with unyielding chains. Many also contained suffering people, if the sounds of groaning and calling out for help were any indication.

Despite all efforts to fight against their captors’ grasps, Lea and Isa were shoved unceremoniously into opposite cells and soon joined the clusters of people in yelling and beating on the doors. By the time the boys’ voices grew hoarse, both had lost track of time. They spent the night staring at each other through the barred window of their cells, silently communicating their intent to get out.

In the weeks that followed, Lea pushed his stubbornness to the limits. He kicked, punched, and yelled for hours on end, constantly defying the apprentices’ attempts to drag him from the cell. Even when they began resorting to violence, beating the redhead until he could no longer stand, Lea continued challenging their authority. Isa was quiet and rarely beaten, but refused to allow the apprentices to touch him, remaining in the corners of his cell to glare icily at anyone who approached.

One of the apprentices, a silver-haired man who spoke little besides to give orders, seemed to enjoy their antics, and by extension, their punishments. He made a point to sneer down at Lea as the burlier apprentices kicked and prodded at him, or watch Isa through the bars of his cell with a smirk on his face for hours on end. This apprentice, with his eerily golden gaze, had set out to unnerve them from the beginning. Lea would never admit it, but it was beginning to work.

The final straw came after the pleas from neighboring cells had grown almost completely silent. Lea and Isa had watched for weeks as the burly men drug man, woman, and child, from their cells. Most never came back, but the ones who did were writhing and covered in tendrils of darkness. Perhaps both boys were losing their minds, for such a thing should not have been impossible, but the fact remained that they could not stay here, or they would die.

The next time Lea glimpsed through the window of his cell, he saw his own fear reflected in Isa’s eyes.

Lea would have given anything for these men to crush his pride again, to throw him out in front of every resident in Radiant Garden. Instead, his hopes were shattered beyond repair the day they finally took Isa from his cell and returned him, unconscious, with streaks of blood caked across his face. The silver-haired apprentice slammed the boy’s head against the bars of Lea’s cell, holding Isa’s limp body by the back of his neck as though the bluenette weighed nothing.

“For harboring the nerve to seek us out a second time,” the man had sneered in response to Lea’s horrified sobs. The combination of his taunting voice and golden eyes would haunt Lea’s nightmares for years to come. “And as thanks, for providing us with a new test subject.”

Lea could only blame himself, really. Once he lost his heart and became Axel, he would wish for the ability to feel guilt, if only to atone for causing his best friend to suffer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I intended to upload this yesterday, but alas, it is midterm week here at university. Homework and exams piled up on me for a few days, and I didn't have much time to write. I'll be publishing a one-shot soon, hopefully within the next few days, so keep your eyes out for that!
> 
> Next time: something fluffier, involving rainfall.


	5. Warmth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now, back to your regularly scheduled fluff.

“Well, _shit._ ”

Isa had decided early in life that he was not a fan of the rain. At the ripe age of sixteen, he kept complaints – especially those regarding personal comfort – to himself, but it was currently a downpour, and he was still two blocks away from Lea’s house.

Isa began sprinting along the cobblestone streets with arms crossed over his body for warmth, and used muscle memory to guide him to his destination against the blinding rain. His signature blue jacket did little to protect him from the effects of the weather, and he was currently drenched and freezing.

When Lea opened the door to greet him, he had to resist the urge to burst out laughing. Isa resembled a drowned puppy, with the spikes of his hair drooping down in a way that resembled ears and a forlorn expression plastered to his face.

“Guess someone forgot to check the weather, huh?” Lea chuckled nervously, closing the door behind him while avoiding eye contact with the other boy.

“No, I definitely did that on purpose,” Isa replied through gritted teeth. He shouldered past Lea towards the living room, but quickly paused and stared pointedly back at the redhead.

“I am _not_ walking across your mother’s carpet soaking wet,” he deadpanned, gesturing to where his hair and clothes were already dripping on the hallway floor and forming a puddle around him. Lea ignored his concern and ushered him into the room.

“Sit down, and I’ll grab a towel.”

“I can’t sit on the couch like this!”

Lea ignored him yet again.

“Carpet dries, you know,” Lea called from the hallway, stopping on his way back to adjust the thermostat a couple of degrees higher. He failed to hear Isa’s grumbled response, but assumed it was unpleasant. When he returned to the living room, he saw that Isa had stripped out of his jacket, revealing a black t-shirt, and returned his shoes to the hallway. He had also returned to the spot on the couch where Lea had pushed him. Hooray for small victories!

The redhead tossed him the promised towel, which Isa caught and began using to dry his hair. While Isa pre-occupied himself with that, Lea grabbed a throw blanket draped across the arm of the couch and tossed that to him, as well. Well, the correct term might be “hurled with the intention to hit him in the face”; this earned him an icy glare once Isa’s head emerged from beneath the towel.

“I was going to thank you, but I think I’ve changed my mind,” he quipped.

Lea snickered at the sarcasm and plopped down next to him, draping one arm across the back of the couch. He glanced over at his friend, wrapped tightly in the blanket with the towel draped over his head. Thankfully, Isa was too caught up in sending death glares out the window to notice.

“Dude, I can feel you vibrating the couch from over here,” Lea complained after a few seconds, snapping his head away just in time to avoid being caught staring.

“Excuse me?”

“You’re shivering,” Lea said, and gestured with his head for Isa to scoot closer. Isa eyed him with a mixture of longing and suspicion, acknowledging that Lea was a miniature heater but also refusing to trust his friend completely for fear of ejection from the couch. Even with the prior kindness of the towel and blanket, nothing would shock him anymore when it came to the other boy.

“Either you scoot closer to me, or I’m coming over there.”

Fine, even if Lea decided to push him off the couch as a joke, Isa would take advantage of whatever warmth he could get.

Hesitantly, the bluenette scooted closer and allowed warmth to engulf him from both the redhead’s side and the arm now laid across his shoulders. His shivering lessened within a couple of minutes, and unwillingly, drowsiness began overtaking him.

“I hate the rain,” Isa muttered, if only to break the awkward silence that was beginning to form between the two of them.

“You don’t say,” Lea snickered. Isa surprised him, staying tucked underneath his arm for so long. He would never say it aloud, but having his best friend pressed so close to him was comforting. Lea felt Isa slowly relax against him, his weight becoming more prominent against the redhead’s side, and decided that he wanted to stay like this for as long as possible. “You wanna watch a movie or something?”

Isa had come to a similar conclusion, already accepting that he was going to fall asleep with his head on Lea’s shoulder. “Fine, but if you don’t return to this spot, I’m locking you outside,” he threatened.

“Well, when you put it like that…”

Lea would have returned, anyways, and Isa was not going to push him away. Both came to the unspoken agreement that this could go unsaid, so long as the warmth between them remained.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you read chapter three, "Crush", then you know Lea's feelings towards Isa has already been established in this story. I'm gonna use that to my advantage and allow a bit of domesticity to creep in, aka cuddling on the couch. In a completely platonic way, of course. *winks*
> 
> I am considering adding a chapter in to explore Isa's feelings towards Lea, but I'm not sure whether that will be added into the next couple of chapters or towards the end. Stay tuned to find out, though! 
> 
> As always, thank you for the kudos, hits, and comment(s). It really means a lot to me, especially with this being the first fanfiction I've published in YEARS. I guess my love for Kingdom Hearts never left me, though. Until next time!


	6. Dominance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get heated - finally, a chapter worthy of the T-rating.

Isa possessed a dominant streak, one that revealed itself at the oddest of times. For example, when Lea’s mom grounded the redhead from playing video games, he and Isa chose to play Monopoly instead.

“It’s the most competitive option we have,” Lea deadpanned. Isa, who had only just arrived to see the dejected boy accept the stack of board game from his mother, struggled to keep from snickering.

The game lasted 45-minutes, in small part due to Isa’s frugal strategy and largely due to his refusal to allow Lea to spend all of his money and go fatally bankrupt. Towards the end of the game, Lea’s motivation unexpectedly returned, and he bought out the remaining quarter of the board with the winnings from landing on free parking. Isa’s luck plummeted, and he landed on every single one of Lea’s spaces, which included hotels more often than not.

“I cannot believe this,” Isa seethed through gritted teeth, glaring down at his two remaining properties. He would need to sell them to Lea in order to make up his debt, but that would also be forfeiting the game. Across from him, Lea crowed in victory, attempting a sit-down version of a victory dance.

 _God,_ he was such a _pain_.

That was the last thought Isa recalled having before he and Lea were sprawled across the bedroom floor. Lea struggled to fend off Isa’s attempts at restraining him, grinning up at the other boy with that same boastful attitude from winning the game. Isa glared down at him, blue hair hanging down to frame the sides of both their faces.

“Such a sore loser,” Lea taunted, swatting at Isa’s hands as they grabbed for his wrists. He yelped as Isa pulled at one of the spikes of his hair instead, successfully keeping his head pinned against the floor.

“You wouldn’t have won if I hadn’t _told you what to do_ ,” Isa growled.

His legs shifted around Lea’s hips to keep him from squirming, causing him to straddle the other boy. Lea narrowed his eyes, and then grabbed Isa’s shoulders. With a successful push of his heels into the floor, he managed to elevate his lower body enough to flip them over. Isa squirmed underneath him, grunting in discomfort against Lea’s angular frame and the pieces of the Monopoly board now strewn across the floor.

“Admit you lost,” Lea challenged.

“Absolutely _not_ ,” Isa snapped, then bucked his hips in an attempt to shift them again, unsuccessful. The movement caused Lea to grunt, and but he ignored the sensation and continued wrestling Isa to the floor.

Lea managed to secure his wrists for only an instant – Isa’s upper body was stronger, and he slammed his arms back into the floor, smashing Lea’s fingers and freeing his hands to push at the other boy’s abdomen. This time, he was able to push Lea back enough to sit up – their chests pressed together as they struggled to keep off the ground. Isa could feel Lea’s heart pounding in time with his, heavy breathing echoing throughout the room.

The fight for dominance lasted several more minutes, bodies shifting against each other and hands reaching for a restraining hold. The friction was causing their faces to flush and bodies to heat up, but both boys credited this to adrenaline from the fight. It was similar to how they used to wrestle as children, minus the increasing awareness of how little distance remained between them. Finally, the sensation of hip-against-hip became too much. With a slight groan, Isa lay back on the floor, surrounding the fight but oddly disappointed when Lea ceased moving against him.

“Looks like I win again,” Lea panted, grin plastered to his face.

 “Shut up!” Isa growled. The remark lacked conviction, though, his body pulsing with too much sensitivity to care about the loss.

Lea felt similarly, but his pride overcame the urge to rut back into Isa for more than just competition’s sake. Isa struggled to keep his hips still, suddenly _very_ aware of how close the two of them were. Although they were avoiding eye contact, the tension in the room was obvious, both boys waiting for the other to make the next move.

Lea was the one to break the silence. “Maybe…we shouldn’t play Monopoly anymore,” he suggested, scratching the back of his head.

“Agreed,” Isa said, the haziness in his brain beginning to clear.

The two finally untangled, moving in silence as they began picking up the scattered pieces of the board. Isa’s heart was still pounding, but the sensitivity was beginning to lessen. Only one thought remained in their minds as Isa observed Lea leave the room, Monopoly box in hand and a slight limp in his walk.

Isa’s dominant streak would be the death of them both.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for being one month behind on updates! University and both of my jobs took over my life for a bit, but I'm finally back on track and ready to write! I'm going to upload the next chapter of "Kiss Me Once, Kiss Me Twice" soon, along with returning to the original weekly updates planned for this story- keep an eye out!
> 
> I intended for this to be yet another angst-y chapter- most of it is already typed up, to be honest- but I might save that for a later chapter or extend it into its own one-shot. Once again, thanks to all of you for the hits, kudos, and bookmarks - until next time!


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